I started gaining weight as a young child. I remember looking in the Sears catalog and having to search for the oval that said "chubby girls." At times it was hard to find something other than food to give me comfort. I never realized how much emphasis I put on food not only for those bad times, but also for the good times, the sad times, etc.
My weight loss surgery journey began when a friend who was interested in surgery asked me to check with the doctors I worked with at Northeast Ambulatory Surgery to see who they recommended. Many of them recommended Dr. John Pilcher, and I passed that information on to my friend. About a year later, after my friend attended his first support group meeting at Staple Mates, he mentioned that I could probably qualify for surgery. I remember being a little offended because I thought a person had to be a lot more than 100 pounds overweight to qualify for surgery. After doing some research, I discovered that my weight was borderline but because I had related health complications (high blood pressure and sleep apnea), I could qualify for weight loss surgery.
I decided to call and make an appointment – but the first available appointment was nearly a year away! I started talking about it at work and while some coworkers were supportive, many of the surgeons were quite opposed. They repeatedly told me how dangerous surgery is, and that I was not that heavy. My daughter, who was also overweight, was very angry with me. She told me I was taking the easy way out, and that I just like to have surgery. I was able to talk her into going to Staple Mates with me, and after the second meeting she called and made an appointment for herself. She actually was able to have surgery before me! Meanwhile, my friend underwent his surgery and was doing great. He had to answer about 1,001 of my questions!
The surgery and hospital experience went very smoothly for me, and I didn’t have any complications. I accidentally pulled out my IV the evening of my surgery so I couldn’t have morphine through an IV but the oral pain pills worked just as well. Being a nurse, I know how important it is to get up and move around after surgery so I walked in the hall every chance I got. I went home on my third post-op day and continued walking frequently after I got home. My neighbor, a surgeon, was very surprised to see me out walking and to see how well I was doing.
The hardest part after surgery was adjusting to what I could eat (or rather the very small amounts of what I could eat) and not being able to drink for 1 hour after eating. I had to set a timer so I could know when I could start drinking. It was amazing how satiated I felt with such a small amount of food. There were times, however, when I did not listen to my body. I would feel full but think there is no way I could have been because I had only eaten a few bites. I would take one more bite and then experience terrible pain. I even vomited once. Eventually I learned to listen to my body.
I feel that the surgery has changed my life in so many good ways. My health is definitely much better. I still have a mild case of sleep apnea even with the weight loss, but I am off all blood pressure medications and my chronic fatigue is nearly gone. I still have occasional aches and pains that come with age but at least now I am not aggravating my joints with the extra weight. It has been almost three years since my surgery and I feel I can pretty much eat anything I want. It’s just a matter of much smaller amounts and making the right choices. If I choose to have too many carbohydrates, I will feel nauseated and sleepy and have what I call my “carb coma.” I try to limit my carb intake and make sure I eat plenty of protein and vegetables.
Weight loss surgery is a tool and patients must choose to make the right choices. The choices are just much easier to make now than they were before. I continue to watch my weight very closely. I have a 5 pound range I use to measure my choices. I may make choices that are not the healthiest or best for weight loss but if I start getting to the top of my 5 pound range then I start choosing more wisely until I am back down to the bottom of my 5 pound range. I don’t ever want to get out of control again like I was prior to surgery.
It is now much easier to do my job as an Operating Room nurse – moving equipment, beds, patients, etc. I don’t get as tired and my legs don’t hurt as badly at the end of the day. I’m also in a relationship after being divorced for 25 years. Before surgery, I had become a recluse and didn’t go out much. I started riding a motorcycle about 2 years prior to surgery and met someone from my motorcycle club. I also got to do something that I would never have been able to do without the weight loss because of a weight limit – skydiving! I did my first tandem jump for my 51st birthday. Talk about a high!!
Without a doubt, I would have the surgery again. I have absolutely no regrets, and I don’t think I would do anything differently. My only suggestion would be to go to a counselor for a period of time before and after to resolve or work on the issues that helped in becoming overweight in the first place. My message for those considering weight loss surgery is that you have to know it is a tool and not a cure. You still have to do your part in making the right healthy choices. The surgery makes it easier to make those choices because there is such a rapid weight loss and the immediate positive feedback makes it even easier to follow the recommended guidelines of protein, protein, protein, vegetables and no beverages for 1 hour after eating.
It is important to learn good eating habits during the first months after surgery, or what we call the "honeymoon phase," because it will make it easier as time passes and you can start tolerating more foods (like carbs). Plan on going to the support groups – they can be really helpful to get you through some of the difficult times. Also, start writing in a journal prior to surgery and take lots of pictures! You will actually enjoy looking back at your “before” pictures and listening to people’s responses. I took pictures the day of my surgery and every month after for the first year because it’s easy to forget how far you have come. It can be a great morale booster to look back at pictures and to read your journal.
I can’t believe my three year anniversary will take place in September 2005. Time has gone by really fast. I still continue to make occasional mistakes with my eating and have to pay for it with nausea and just feeling generally lousy, but I am really glad I still have that happen. In some way, it helps keep me in check.
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